Does God Tell You Specifically What to Buy and Sell With Your Money?

Hey Everyone,

I came across this article and found it rather interesting:

https://moneywise.com/managing-money/debt/dont-blame-that-on-the-holy

Most people know who Dave Ramsey is, as he is arguably the most well-known Christian leader in the finance community. In this article, a woman called into Mr. Ramsey's show, explaining that she and her husband had a portfolio of crypto coins worth about $60,000. They also had $14,000 worth of debt in student loans, and $37,000 worth of auto debt, and were closing on a home. She asked Mr. Ramsey if they should sell all their crypto to pay off these debts, or if they should hold onto it.

She noted that with everything happening on the political landscape, their crypto portfolio had already taken a $30,000 hit (apparently, it used to be worth $90,000.) She was thinking they should just keep holding in the hope that it would go up again, but Mr. Ramsey told her to liquidate it and pay off their debts.

She countered by saying that she and her husband are Christians, so they "don't gamble," but felt that "God had led them" to invest in 3 crypto coins specifically, and so their first inclination was to wait, because they wanted to get a sure sign again from God that they should sell.

I found this particularly intriguing because Dave Ramsey is also a Christian, and so here we have two parties both claiming to be Christians, but standing on the exact opposite sides of the fence, all in the name of the Lord.

I have heard stories like this often -- that God "led" someone to a certain investment or company -- and so even if things went wrong, people held on, hoping against hope that God was going to "lead" them into a recovery of their money and a path to profitability.

I once read about a Christian leader who became very interested in the stock market and believed "God" was telling him a bull market was going to happen that year (meaning that it was supposedly going to take off and people would make a lot of money if they invested,) and so that's what he told his followers -- but it didn't happen.

I was in a church in 2007 in which a woman who was "known to have the gift of prophecy" who told us that "God" was saying 2008 should be looked at with the number 8 going sideways, as if it were 2 extra zeros: 200+00, proclaiming that the Lord was declaring 2008 "a year of double prosperity."

2007-2008 is known to most people in the finance community as the Great Financial Crisis in which the housing market blew up -- and many people wound up in very dire financial situations. Many retirees lost their entire life savings, and even today, some have never recovered from that time.

Now I understand that maybe it COULD have been a prosperous time for some people (they say those who had the money to invest back then got rich when things came back,) and that it could have meant a growth in spiritual or other means of prosperity, of which there is no price.

But for myself, I've learned to become very cautious of those who "claim" some kind of special "insight" "that came from God," especially when it's about finances.

Please not that the purpose of this thread is NOT to argue about whether or not certain investments are good or bad. I know several people think things like crypto, the stock market, and other investments are evil. I'm sure many will quote the passage about "the LOVE of money (not money itself, but the love of it) is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." -- 1 Timothy 6:10

But this is NOT what this thread is about, and if you'd like to discuss those things, I highly encourage you to start threads about those topics, as they would be interesting -- but not here.

But for THIS thread, I'm interested in things such as:

* Have you, or anyone you know, ever invested into something you felt God led you to? How did it turn out?

* Have you ever made a big purchase that you felt God wanted you to make? A car, house, trip, college or program, etc. -- what were the results? Did it pay off?

* Have you ever started a business because you believe God told you to? What happened?

* When you are making big money decisions -- to buy, sell, pay off debts, or take on more debt -- how do you personally discern what God is telling you about them?

*If things did not go well, what conclusions have you made? Was it really from God? And if so, why did things go wrong?


Like the woman in this article, I've heard many stories of people saying that God told them to do this or that regarding finances. In comparison to the number of stories I've heard, only a few seemed to find what we would call "success." Many others went broke and lost all the spare money they had.

Now I realize God still might have told them to do this and there could have been other lessons He wanted them to learn from it.

But the thing that troubles me is that most of the Christians I've heard who make financial decisions that they insist "are from God" do so believing they are going to make a fortune -- and all too often, that just doesn't seem to be the case. So what's going on? Are their expectations wrong? Are they really hearing from God? Do we all need to temper our expectations (bracing for total loss) when God "leads" us into big financial decisions?

I have NO DOUBT that God directs us with our finances.

But I'm just not so sure how to tell whether or not something is actually coming from Him -- or the hearts of people who, in their hope, convince themselves He's telling them what they want to hear.

What have YOU seen, heard, and experienced when it comes to God directing you and the rest of His people with what to do with their money?

God has never led me to a specific transaction. I am to blame for all of them. The Bible does discuss good financial practices if one has eyes to see and ears to hear. A biggie is to stay out of debt as the borrower is the slave to the lender. That one would contradict the couple who didn't want to sell off their cryptocurrency to pay off their debt. As far as gambling, how much is cryptocurrency actually worth? That couple needs to attend a finance 101 class, but even if they did chances are the teacher would be ignorant about best financial practices.

The Bible seems to indicate that it is a good practice to fill your stores for difficult times. When the world was full of farmers, that was necessary to keep from going hungry between crops, let alone to be prepared for a crop failure that might occur. That would indicate living below your means so that you can store a little away along the way. The couple in the Dave Ramsey story were living above their means as they were in debt.

It's my opinion that Dave Ramsey (his show) doesn't provide good advice 100% of the time, but for the financial illiterate (95% of the US population), the show does a pretty good job.

I certainly wish that God led my investments... I'd be a gazillionaire by now. I have prayed about things, but in the end I made the decision. My Christian beliefs certainly had an effect on financial decisions made.

God does not promise us wealth. He does promise us eternity with Him where the streets will be made of gold.

Outstanding post, @Tall_Timbers.

I should turn your first two sentences into a sign and hang it above my desk.

I have to admit, I have felt that God leads me in certain directions financially, so I'll be very interested in hearing what it's like for others. But like you have so eloquently said, I am responsible for all of my own decisions. And even if God does lead me into something, I'm trying to temper my expectations that He means for it to be a learning process and not a get-rich-quick scheme.

I do believe God has been telling me this past year (2025) to save as much money as I can. I don't know if I'm hearing or understanding right, but I keep thinking of the "fat cow, lean cow" situation that Joseph dreamed about in Egypt. (Seven years of plenty followed by seven years of famine.)

Now, my cow is far from fat (or maybe I should say, my pig, as in, my piggy bank ,) but I do believe God has told me that I need to store up for emergencies, whether my own, or those He leads me to.

And with the cost of living always on the rise, I know I always need to store up a cushion because I don't know what the next year will bring.

I think it's very important to have financial Christian role models (and more choices than just Mr. Ramsey,) so I really appreciate you sharing your life experiences with us.

Not many Christians will talk about finances and I certainly understand why, but I'm very thankful to those who help others by telling us what they've gone through.

I think God can absolutely give us peace, caution, or conviction about a financial decision, but it’s rarely as direct as “Buy Ethereum now.

Loved this post, thank you!!

I'm in a few chats in the Financial Community (YouTube and Discord channels,) and I find it to be A LOT like modern religion -- everyone has a strategy and core beliefs (just like all the different church denominations,) and everyone who believes or invests differently than they do is an unsaved heathen.

When people try to bring God into the mix (seeing as there have also been many influential Christians and pastors who sold their own crypto coins,) I only hang around to watch the aftermath and take it as a lesson.

I haven't heard of a single one of these "Christian" coins that actually succeeded, and I doubt one ever will, unless it's propped up by fraud.

I of course pray about big purchases. ("Big" in this case can be extremely subjective. To me anything over $150 is a major purchase because I am not rich.) Mostly I pray that if it's a big mistake, God will let me know before it's too late to reverse it.

There are only two times I can recall when God directly told me what I should do. Both times I had the option to do what I wanted. It was never a matter of "Do this or else!" It was always more a matter of "You really should do this."

One time my car died. It was a 1990 Chevy Lumina, six cylinder, and I loved that car. It cornered like a dream. When I wanted to get another car, I felt like God was telling me to get a minivan instead. Minivans are SOOOOO not-me. But it turned out to be a great idea, because I started driving the church bus a bit later, and sometimes when it was not available my minivan was a good substitute. It was also handy to haul around sound systems and stuff, back when I was doing a lot of hauling around sound systems and stuff for church projects.

The second time was when I was going to get a lapel mic for the puppet team. You really need a clip-on mic when both hands are doing puppet control stuff. I found a good one, good reviews on amazon, decent price, already had it in the website shopping cart, when I felt a little check in my spirit, like it was a bad idea. Not like it was a bad device, but it still just a bad idea to get this thing at this time. Next day at my job I found out a bunch of us were being laid off that day, and suddenly that money I was going to spend was a LOT more important to me.

But that's all. God doesn't give me stock market insider info every day. Just a couple times when he gave me some very specific advice for a very specific situation.

1. No
2. Yes. i bought a farm house. i asked the Lord for a house with 7 particular items. He delivered just like i asked. the purchase was totally perfect. it paid off big time. i paid the house off early in 1 payment.
3. No. but, i started a landscape business, antique business, coin business & a band. all are happy success stories.
4. i make my own decisions to buy, sell & invest. my wife & i do not take on debt, we pay cash for everything.
5. i never experienced a bad or unfruitful deal. all prosperous.
6. i do ask God to lead me in the right direction to find antiques & i do hear from Him. the devil, easily can & will play tricks on anyone. you have to learn 1st John on discerning the spirits. relaxing with big decisions is tough. people get to worried & negative very quickly. especially the 1st timers. " brace" for total loss? you already are forecasting failure in advance. that's not the proper strategy in investing or purchasing!
7. God knows our intent with money. never ask for selfish, material or abundant items. you have to be honest with yourself & know what you are wasteful of.

Before I was baptized I occasionally enjoyed going to the Casino and playing roulette . I would still like to do that but I know for sure that God does not want me to so I don't do it , even though I would love to . I'm not rich by any means but I thank God that I do have enough to cover all my expenses and a little bit of savings . I know a few Christians who do the lottery , they r very devoted to the Truth . I don't condemn them at all bit I do struggle to understand them . Ultimately what others do with their money is their business , I know what God expects from me when it come to money and I try , to do what I know He wants / doesn't want me to do . I'm sure that He does not want me to gamble in any form so I don't . Even though I would very much like to , just a little bit ? Occasionally ? No ? No . Definitely not .

a mature honest response Suze!

My dad, a Christian, used to play lotto every week. He wasnt really counting on winning, he just thought it was fun, though I'm sure he'd have loved to have won.

But my dad also had good self control. He could stop without a problem.
Even when he drank it wasn't a problem for him. He never got drunk or even tipsy and could quit at any time. He simply enjoyed having a drink sometimes, typically wine or beer.

So sometimes it seems that some things are subjective for each individual.

I, myself, have an addictive personality. Fortunately I stayed away from all drugs and didn't even try to drink before I was 21. And even when I tried it made me feel worse. And I wasn't drinking a lot. And never really got tipsy or drunk.
Since then I've not had more than a small taste of any alcohol. And didn't really care for the few sips I did try.

Same with smoking cigarettes. I tried them once or twice, borrowed from friends, but didn't have the money to continue (as a teen) so I gave that up.
And now I'm glad I kept out of all that mess or I'd be addicted, for sure.

I have listened to Dave Ramsey for many years. His advice is generally solid. The only flaw I see in his financial advice is that he almost always advises his callers to liquidate their investments and pay off their debt. The better approach is to weigh the long-term financial position of all your alternatives and pick the best mix of debt and investments.

For instance, let's assume you are like me and your only debt is a mortgage that has 20 years left on it and is at a 3.25% annual interest rate. What should you do with an inheritance that would allow you to pay off your mortgage? The best advice, in my opinion, would be to compare 1) paying off the mortgage plus investing the avoided mortgage payments in a good mutual fund, or 2) investing all the funds in the same good mutual fund and paying the mortgage payments as usual. I think you will find that the interest rate assumed for the mutual fund will determine which strategy is best. Why? Because it does not make financial sense to forgo an investment with a high rate of return to pay off debt that has a low interest rate.

That being said, there are other considerations. The main one is that we always want to do what the Lord is instructing us to do. He is leading me to be conservative with the resources He has given me, so I would generally not risk it in Crypto. But I would not advise anyone to go against what the Lord told them to do. I would just caution them to make sure it is the Lord and not their desire for riches.